Leadership Book Review Blog: The 5 Levels of Leadership

I stumbled into my first leadership position early in my career when my boss and mentor was diagnosed with brain cancer. I spent a year struggling to navigate what leadership meant and at the end of it all, I learned nothing about leadership and everything about the importance of it.

My second opportunity to lead a team came just a few years later and presented itself because I was the typical “lead by example, do the right things right, killer work ethic” employee with potential to be great. Again, in a role with leaders who managed effectively but did not lead, I was clueless about how to develop and motivate employees. Task oriented and position focused, I was living in the space that John C. Maxwell describes as Level 1 Leadership. I had been invited to the leadership table, I had a title that indicated I was a leader, and I hoped people would follow me because of the position I held.

Luckily, there was a changing of the guard and I had the opportunity to work with someone who understood leadership and how to develop leaders. She too, recognized my potential and offered me the opportunity to attend training that I desperately needed, but wasn’t aware I needed it. From then on out, I became a student of leadership development as if my career depended on it. I learned the profound impact leaders can have on the employee experience and I knew I wanted to be the one who developed more of the good leaders that people want to follow.

Maxwell describes the 5 Levels of Leadership as:

Level 1 - Position - People follow you because they have to

Level 2 - Permission - People follow you because they want to

Level 3 - Production - People follow because of what you have done for the organization

Level 4 - People Development - People follow because of what you have done for them

Level 5 - Pinnacle - People follow because of who you are and what you represent

Once you are invited to the leadership table, you have the opportunity to progress through the leadership levels, though it’s not always a direct path up the ladder. You can be on different levels with different members of your team. You can progress to level 3, make a misstep, and fall back to level 1. You could progress to level 4, find a new job, and be back at level 1 with your new team earning your way back up through the levels again.

You can probably surmise that level 1 leadership isn’t where you want to hang out for long, yet this is where many leaders sit, stuck in their need to control their environment and their team members. At level 1, you leverage your position to get work done through your team, you don’t have influence. When leaders struggle to influence, especially when it comes to cross collaboration with other departments that they don’t have positional authority over, I start to inquire about the approach they use with their team. I listen for, “I told them this was how it should be done” or “When I spell it out for them step by step.” I even had a boss one time who reminded me often that I worked FOR her and not WITH her. She was relying exclusively on her position to get me to follow. It didn’t work, by the way.

While it takes time and intentionality to progress through each of the leadership levels, I certainly think level 1 is the hardest to transcend. Some people are naturals and will speed through this level and be on to level 2 in no time, but the vast majority of new leaders don’t receive the training, guidance, or mentorship soon enough and will flail for several years before figuring out that position alone doesn’t make you an effective leader.

Those level 5 leaders though. Not only do they demonstrate a high degree of leadership skill, they are able to develop level 4 leaders, creating a lasting legacy in the organizations they serve in. Think back. Have you had the opportunity to work with a level 5 leader? What was the difference? How did they impact your professional experience?

One of the profound quotes in this book, “The ultimate leader is one who is willing to develop people to the point that they eventually surpass him or her in knowledge and ability.” -Fred A. Manske Jr.

This book provides a clear framework for reference and reflection, encouraging leaders to take stock of how they currently lead their teams and practical behaviors they can implement to work through the 5 levels. If you find yourself struggling to influence your team and or colleagues, this book will help you identify where you are getting stuck.

If you need help getting unstuck, a coach can help you navigate the change and implement new behaviors to ensure success. Reach out today!